Author: N. E. White

Back in 2013, I did a blog post about women SFF authors, “Reality and the Welcome Sign — Gender and SFFH,” in reference to Tor UK’s editorial director Julie Crisp’s blog post at the time about how Tor welcomed women authors but they weren’t showing up in submissions, or at least not for things like […]

As you may know, I decided to go NaNoWriMo Rebel this year and finish up a work in progress I had started over the summer. While I wasn’t entirely sure how many words I needed to finish the project, I knew I could always start something else if I suddenly found myself with too much time on my hands.

Alas, time does not sprout on trees. (Or does it?)

Anyway, the point is (there’s a point?), I finished my story.

Woohoo!

The last 6,700 words of it are hand written. I’ll have to transcribe that into my computer. I’m sure that will precipitate more words, but at the moment, the story stands at 54,513 words.

There’s a lot of description and background stuff I need to add. I’m thinking, after the second draft, it will be around 70k or so. Not bad. A respectable amount. And manageable. I might just have a novel. Finally!

Unless the urge to revise grips me sooner, I’ll set it aside for now. I have two stories I’d like to tackle. One I wrote three years ago (a novella-length, science fiction dystopia set in Fresno, California). The other I wrote last year (an urban fantasy short-story series set in Oakland, California). Lately, they have both been tugging at me. I’d like to clean them up and get them out in the world.

Speaking of getting things out in the world… have you checked out You Are Here yet?

How did your NaNoWriMo go? Did the election results derail you or bolster your resolve?

We finally got it all together and published it yesterday. I’m proud of it. I hope folks like it. There’s something for everyone in this anthology.

The first story is a fun little wizard story and the last is a great piece by Lindsay Buroker set in her popular Fallen Empire world. It tells of the very first adventure Alisa and Mica have together. In between these two stories are pieces that touch on horror, military sci-fi, a bit of steam-punk, magical fae, and much more. We even have a few literary pieces we’re quite impressed with. And to top it all off, each story features a map.

If you’re interested, follow the You Are Here blogsite to learn more about the authors and find out about upcoming specials and giveaways. We’ll also have a fun, interactive map to share.

Well, what do you think? Do I look like I’m from the 25th century? My partner says I look like I’m from the ’70s, which by today’s very low standards, is pretty much the future. I am from the retro-future. The future that should have been. Tomorrow is the big show. At 7:30pm, I will…

You don’t have to, of course, but if you did…I’ll send you a box of chocolates. No joke.

If you’re interested, drop me a line in the comment section. I’ll email you an advance reader copy of You Are Here – Tales of Cartographic Wonders featuring Lindsay Buroker, Jason W. LaPier, Charlotte Ashley, and many more great authors.

Here’s what you’ll find behind the gorgeous cover:

Maps define our lives as they define our world.

What were once the priceless resources of a brave and lonely few as they set off into the unknown are now carried in the pockets of billions around the globe. But they were never merely lines on paper – while depicting our geography we infused them with our intelligence, our desires, our imagination, and our memories.

Yesterday, we mapped the world only after we discovered its secrets. Today we map the mind and the body, and slowly unveil the universe before we set off into its infinite domains. Maps may have changed, but they are also changeless: they will always guide us.

This anthology charts eighteen worlds which are beautiful, frightening, alien, familiar – sometimes none of these, sometimes all. These stories cover every corner of the speculative map, featuring horror, science fiction, steampunk, high fantasy and more, in styles ranging from the literary and the lyrical to the pulpy and the thrilling.

Wherever you find yourself, there’s only one thing you can ever know for sure: